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Shangri-La
Shangri-La is a Garden World in the Epsilon Eridani system, part of the American Corridor and site of the largest US colony. Planetary Data Shangri-La is a cool savannah world. Oceans cover 68% of the planet's surface and there are four major continents - Columbia, Appalachia, Sierra, and Okefenokee, which are all incorporated as states in the United States of America. There are thousands of smaller islands, with three major archipelagos along the southern arc, generally known as The Territories. Planetary Composition/Geology The planet is generally drier and cooler than Earth. Shangri-La is approximately 98% the diameter of Earth. Shangri-La is less dense than Earth, having about 95% of Earth's volume and 91% of Earth's mass. Internal structure Like Earth, Shangri-La has differentiated into a cool, dense metallic core overlaid by less dense materials. Current models of its interior imply a core region about 2,594 ± 65 kilometers in radius, consisting primarily of iron and nickel with about 16–17% sulfur. This iron(II) sulfide core is thought to be twice as rich in lighter elements than Earth's core. The core is surrounded by a silicate mantle that formed many of the tectonic and volcanic features on the planet, but it now appears to be dormant. Besides silicon and oxygen, the most abundant elements in the Shangrin crust are iron, magnesium, aluminum, calcium, and potassium. The average thickness of the planet's crust is about 84 km, with a maximum thickness of 225 km. Earth's crust, averaging 40 km, is only one half as thick as Shangri-La's crust, relative to the sizes of the two planets. Shangri-La is now largely tectonically and volcanically dormant.Primary geologic activity is erosion The surface of Shangri-La is largely tableland, with occasional rolling hills. Appalachia and Sierra have some higher elevations, with long-eroded ridgelines and deep canyons snaking their way from the interiors to the coasts. The highest point on the planet is Sierra Vista in Sierra, 1,338m above sea level. Climate While rarely below freezing beyond the poles, it is also rarely hot. With an axial tilt of only 4.2°, Shangri-La's climate is regionally divided into wet seasons and dry seasons.The colonial settlement of Davisport on Davis Island in the Territories is the wettest populated area on the planet, with an average of 194 local days of measurable precipitation (though many settlements in the state of Sierra receive a greater volume of precipitation). The city of Los Rios, a suburb of Dixie City, is the driest, with an average of 42 local days of measurable precipitation. Some unpopulated regions are known to by drier, but lack of reliable long-term reporting prevents determination. Snow and ice are common only north of the 70° northern and southern latitudes, though brief seasonal snowstorms are known to blow in off of the oceans are far south as 52° in the northern hemisphere and as far north as 48° in the southern, though any accumulated snow typically melts within days. Flora and Fauna Life on Shangri-La never evolved beyond basic, fungus- and lichen-like carbon-based plants and primordial animal life. There are simple multi-cellular colonial organisms similar to jellyfish and siphonophores endemic to the equatorial seas, but become increasingly sparse towards the shallower poles. These creatures feed on the local equivalent of protists drifting in the warm water and are benign in their interaction with terrestrial life. With some genetic modification, Earth plants have thrived in Shangri-La's tropics, where plentiful water and warmer temperatures permit growing seasons of sufficient duration. In more northern latitudes various pine species spread rapidly, along with prairie grasses and shrubs. The vast majority of Earth-like ecosystems are planned, curated, and managed by corporate and civic groups. The Terranova Corporation has terraformed some 5.2% of the planet's surface alone, in support of its effort to attract colonists with bespoke, ecologically themed communities. Private citizens and several for and not-for-profit foundations have had success introducing numerous fauna, including long-extinct African species such as giraffes, black rhinoceroses and forest elephants. The marine chemistry of the more isolated seas have been adjusted to begin introducing imported sea life from Earth, though only molluscs, marine algae, seagrasses and crustaceans have taken to the new planet with any great success so far. History Discovery Epsilon Eridani is 10.5 light-years (3.2 parsecs) from Sol. It is the third-closest individual star or star system visible to the unaided eye from most of Earth's surface. Epsilon Eridani's designation was established in 1603 by Johann Bayer, a German cartographer. Epsilon Eridani A, now known as Shangri-La, was first inferred in planet-finding studies in the 2030s, whereas previously only asteroid belts and two gas giants were suspected. Epsilon Eridani A was later confirmed as a planet in the habitable zone of the young star system in 2095. The first detailed survey of the system took place in 2109, when the NASA EE-Enterprise probe reached the system and by 2117 had relayed information on the positive indications of habitability back to the US government, which promptly made the information secret - referring to the planet only as Project Shangri-La - named for a fictional place described in the 1933 novel Lost Horizon by British author James Hilton and used colloquially to describe a place that only exists in fantasy. In 2161 the first manned exploration ship arrived, the USS John Goddard, ''arrived in-system and in 2166, the United States formalized its claim to Epsilon Eridani A, and thanks to a popular vote, named it Shangri-La. The first human on the planet was Lieutenant Commander Samantha Davis of the US Early Exploitation Commercial exploitation of the Epsilon Eridani system began in 2169. Prospecting and survey ships scoured the system's asteroid belts, followed quickly by exploitation ships, though not establishing any permanent outposts. The first permit for a geological survey of Shangri-La was jointly granted in 2172 to both the University of Kansas and the Washington State University. This permit is still in effect, and UK and WSU contributed to the founding of Eridani University in 2217. Colonization The USS ''Zuni, ''an Arapaho-class colony ship, arrived in-system in 2189 with 2300 settlers, escorted by the USS ''Saratoga ''and several commercial support vessels. These pioneers established the city of Zuni, chosen for its proximity to an ideal spaceport site and named for their colonial transport. As with all American colonies, retired and honorably discharged military personnel had been granted titles to land in this new world (equivalent to 5000 hectares each), in exchange for continued service as unpaid colonial militia. The initial militia component on the Zuni numbered 76, with over 250 dependents and family members accompanying them. Fort Douglas, 52km west of Zuni, was established as the first US military outpost. A Marine Corps company became the first permanent active duty unit on the planet in 2205, who along with Navy Seabees helped to establish Naval Base Columbia at the Zuni aerospaceport. Among the first commercial enterprises to arrive at Shangri-La were Boeing Interstellar, who set up an aerospacecraft maintenance and sales facility catering to pioneers and government requirements and Lockheed, who began construction at an orbital fuel and maintenance station. Further System Development Hot Springs was settled in 2219 under a corporate charter to Eridani Metals, and a military logistics facility on Valhalla developed a settlement that in 2257 was officially recognized as a colony. Neither planet has proved economically viable to sustain large populations, with Hot Springs maintaining a permanent population of just 22,000 in six settlements and Valhalla 240,000 in ten sub-surface communities. Both planets are considered unincorporated territories of the United States. Commercial shuttle service connects both colonies to Shangri-La. Administration Federal Government The Federal Government is represented by Military Shangri-La is host to the largest off-Earth collection of US military forces. '''Columbia' Fort Douglas Home to the US Army's 8th Army, X Corps, 3rd Armored Division, 9th Infantry Division and 24th Infantry Division. Base population is roughly 120,000 servicemembers and their families. Located 50km outside of Zuni. The base is nearly 1,200 square kilometers in area, allowing for large scale maneuver training. Fort Zancudo An orbital defense base protecting the northern hemisphere. Home to the 212th Artillery Brigade (Orbital). Naval Base Columbia The base complex is large and shares facilities with the Zuni International Aerospaceport. Composed of Naval Aerospace Facility Anchorhead, Marine Corps Base Ripper, Naval Support Activity Zuni, Tyrone Davis Marine Corps Reserve Facility, and Naval Operational Support Center Zuni. Home of the 3d and 6th Marine Divisions and Navy Patrol Wing Ten. Home to nearly 150,000 service members and their families and the largest US military facility outside of the continental United States. Three 8000m runways and one 12000m runway. Horner Aerospace Force Base Horner ASFB is located on the southern tip of Columbia state's Hudson Island and was formerly known as Rocky Point Aerospaceport until taken over by the Aerospace Force in 2282. The base is home to the 5th Aerospace Force, the primary aerospace command for the Epsilon Eridani Command, and is the primary maintenance and sustainment facility for the USASF on the planet. The 7th Aerospace Fighter Wing and 29th Aerospace Bomb Wing are the major tenant commands. Four 9000m runways and one 12000m runway. Appalachia Fort Sheridan Home to the US Army's I Corps, 1st Cavalry Division, 2d Infantry Division, and 7th Infantry Division.The 1st Aerospace Defense Brigade and 17th Artillery Brigade (Orbital) are also based there. Lafayette Aerospace Force Base Situated in the Appalachia Arctic, Lafayette ASFB is a cold, remote facility home to the 25th Aerospace Bomb Wing. Two 5000m runways. Sierra Fort Santa Ana Home of the 10th Armored Division and the 35th Aerospace Defense Brigade. Alamo Aerospace Force Base Co-located with Fort Santa Ana and is home to the 18th Aerospace Fighter Wing and a Sierra Air National Guard aerospace fighter squadron. Two 4000m runways. Okefenokee Fort Swamp Fox Home of the 17th Airborne Division. Boyd Aerospace Force Base Home of the 90th Aerospace Fighter Wing, 64th Aerospace Bomb Wing, 16th Aerospace Mobility Wing and the Okefenokee Air National Guard's 1099th Aerospace Maintenance Wing. The second-largest Aerospace Force Base on the planet, with three 10,000m long runways, hangars dug into the local terrain and extensive maintenance facilities. Colonial Government Administration The Colonial Governor is the rotating head of the Colonial Council, made up of the four state governors on the planet and one non-voting representative of the US Department of Colonial Affairs. The Colonial Governor serves a two-year term every eight years and is rotated beginning with Columbia, Appalachia, Okefenokee, and ending with Sierra. The Colonial Governor is the executive branch for the entire planet, and primarily deals with interstellar trade, planetary and orbital administration. The governor is assisted by an appointed Colonial Cabinet. The Colonial Council is the legislative body for the planet. It is bicameral, with a 17-personal Colonial Senate (four from each state and a member representing the non-state Territories) and the River House of 310 (98 from Columbia, 75 from Sierra, 68 from Appalachia, 50 from Okefenokee and 19 from The Territories). The Federal District Court for the System of Epsilon Eridani, formerly the Federal District Court of Shangri-La, is the local general trial court of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with the district court, as well as a United States Court of Appeals. There are nine federal courthouses on the planet. As with all established exo-planetary US Federal Court Districts, a five-person Colonial Judicial Council has the authority granted by Congress to be the ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all federal courts and state court cases involving issues of federal law plus original jurisdiction over a small range of cases within legal boundaries of the Epsilon Eridani system. In the legal system of the United States Department of Colonial Affairs, the Colonial Judicial Council is generally the intermediate interpreter of federal law including the United States Constitution, but it may act only within the context of a case in which it has jurisdiction. The Council does not have power to decide political questions, and its enforcement arm is in the executive rather than judicial branch of Colonial government. Matters of federal law that that involve entities within the Epsilon Eridani system and jurisdictions outside of the system are still decided by the United States Supreme Court. Military The adjutant general of the Shangri-La National Guard is the commander for both the Army and Aerospace National Guards of the planet. Each individual state has deputy adjutants that are in command of their respective state forces. Under wartime conditions, the Shangri-La Guard falls under the command of the Epsilon Eridani Command (EECOM) based on Valhalla. Army National Guard The Shangri-La Army National Guard is headquartered at Zuni Reserve Center, Fort Douglas, Columbia, also home of XXII Corps, and the 50th and 55th Infantry Divisions of the Columbia Army National Guard (CUARNG) are headquartered on the base. The 67th Infantry Division, CUARNG, is headquartered in Sycamore. XXIII Corps is headquartered at Obama Armory, Dixie City, Appalachia. The 110th Infantry Division (APARNG), 73d Infantry Division (SIANG) and 64th Infantry Division (OFARNG) round out the major Army National Guard forces on the planet. Aerospace National Guard The USAF ANG's 19th Aerospace Force is the reserve component aerospace element for the planet and is representative of all four states on the planet. The 19th ASF is headquartered at Horner Aerospace Force Base outside of Zuni and is composed of the following elements: 177th Aerospace Fighter Wing (AFW): Columbia Air National Guard (ANG) (48 FT-17D) 178th AFW: Columbia ANG (36 FT-28A) 180th AFW: Appalachia ANG (36 FT-17G) 181st AFW: Sierra ANG (36 FT-17D) 908th Aerospace Control Wing (ACW): Columbia ANG 8th Aerospace Training Wing: Columbia ANG (48 FT-20A/B) 1099th Aerospace Maintenance Wing: Okefenokee ANG 158th Aerospace Mobility Wing: Sierra ANG Economy Agriculture is the largest sector of the economy, developed steadily since the first colony's arrival and largely uninterrupted even during the Chinese occupation. Over one hundred years of terraforming, financial investment, a mild climate and successful genetic adaptations of Earth crops has ensured success of the agricultural sector on the planet. Vast farms have almost completely replaced hydroponic gardens and Shangri-La has become a net exporter of agricultural products, to include grains and lumber. A significant agricultural support sector has developed with robotic factories, agroengineering and transportation companies all catering to the industry. Education Eridani University is the oldest and most prestigious center for academic learning on the planet. Located in the Newport District of Zuni City, it has an on-campus student body averaging some 29,000, while another 279,000 enroll in distance learning or attend a satellite campus. Each state also maintains a trio of state-funded universities, each providing undergraduate and graduate-level courses for general studies, but each also specializing in a particular field - typically mechanical or electrical engineering, agriculture, and colonial governance or planetary arts and sciences (terraforming). Top Ten Universities, by on-campus student population: * Eridani University; 29,000 * State University of Columbia; 26,000 * Columbia State Engineering University; 24,000 * Sierra State Agricultural and Colonial University; 21,000 * University of Sierra at Presidio, 19,000 * Columbia State Colonial University, 15,000 * Okefenokee State A&M; 14,000 * University of Zuni, 12,000 * Sierra Stare Planetary Science University; 11,000 * Appalachia State Agricultural University, 11,000 All states are obligated to fund and support a primary and secondary education system. Though attendance at a physical school is not mandatory, all citizens are required to pass a comprehensive examination for access to non-emergency government services, higher education, and government employment. Literacy on the planet is over 98%, though English proficiency makes up 87% of that total and other languages, generally Spanish or Tagalog, is 11%. Some 62% of the population on Shangri-La is considered bi- or multi-lingual. State of Columbia Columbia is a state of the United States. It was admitted to the Union as the 84th State on July 4th, 2387 - twenty years after liberation from Celestial occupation. The population of nearly 10,000,000 is overwhelmingly rural, scattered in small colonial towns of 10,000 persons or less.Despite being the smallest continent of the planet (made up of the four main islands of Hudson, Cascade, Aramea, and Huckfinn), it was selected as the site of the first colony because the location that later developed into Zuni City was ideal for a spaceport - near the equator and able to take advantage of the planet's spin for launching into orbit, with the ocean ensuring that any failed launches would fall into the sea and not into potentially habitable areas. Zuni Zuni, also known as Zuni City, is the home of the planetary administration of Shangri-La, and the state capital for Columbia, located on the island of Hudson. As of the census of 2410, the population was 2,410,656. Developed from Zuni Colony, and takes its name from the ship USS Zuni (Arapaho-class colony ships were all named after Native American tribes) that delivered the first permanent settlers. Zuni is broadly divided into ten districts, including Old Colony, New Colony, Newport, Greenfields, Southport, The Heights, and Foundry. Other major cities Pueblo: 1,144,981 Nuevo Durango: 812,885 Sycamore: 691,254 Salish: 276,221 Infrastructure Aerospaceports: 5 (primary: Zuni International) Zuni International is the primary port of entry for all emigrants to Shangri-La. Road: 5,290km paved Rail: Counties There are 26 counties in the State State of Appalachia Appalachia is a state of the United States and the largest continent on the planet with nearly 60% of the planet's total landmass. It was admitted to the Union as the 85th State on July 4th, 2388 - twenty one years after liberation from Celestial occupation. The population of nearly 6,800,000 is overwhelmingly rural, scattered in small colonial towns of 10,000 persons or less. Dixie City Dixie City is the the state capital for Appalachia. As of the census of 2410, the population was 1,842,602. Other major cities Erie: 1,387,731 Athens: 344,292 Yaqui City: 188,912 Infrastructure Aerospaceports: 3 (primary: Cumberland International) Road: 2,290km paved Rail: 566km Counties There are 14 counties in the State State of Sierra Sierra is a state of the United States. Admitted to the Union as the 86th State on 1 October, 2390. The population is just over 7.5 million. Presidio Presidio is the capital of the state. As of the 2410 census, the population was 1,482,473. Other major cities New Tulsa: 913,150 Bridgeport: 722,985 Lawton: 541,826 New Wichita: 322,074 State of Okefenokee The Territories The Territories are an organized, incorporated region of the United States. The Territories is comprised of the islands and archipelagos not forming any of the four states on the planet of Columbia. The population of The Territories is roughly 2,000,000 spread out across an area of nearly 10,000 islands across the planet - roughly in an arc along the Southern Ocean. The capital is Pinewood City, and the political leader of The Territories is the Territorial President. The Territories are divided into counties, each with a county commissioner, a county court and a sheriff. Due to the wide distribution of islands, islets predominantly in the southern hemisphere, The Territories has 107 distinct counties. As can be expected with such an area to administer, some of the more remote reaches of The Territories are effectively ungoverned spaces, and have provided havens for resistance fighters during the occupation, pro-independence militias, criminals, religious zealots and persons engaging in otherwise illicit activity. Pinewood City The capital of and largest city in The Territories, also the southernmost major settlement on Columbia. The 2410 census recorded a population of 185,025 for the city. Population Breakdown Total Population: 31,278,020 Native Born: 59.3% (first generation: 23.8%; second generation: 18.2%; third generation: 14.7%; fourth generation: 3.5%;) Immigrants: 40.7% (USA: 37.1%; UC: 2.8%; 0.8% other) Ethnicities (percentage, based on 2410 census) Category:Colony Worlds Category:Garden Worlds Category:USA Colonies